Economy grew more than 3 times faster than euro average in 2018

Gross domestic product expanded by 6.7 per cent last year, while gross national product grew by 5.3 per cent. Photograph: iStock

The Irish economy grew by 6.7 per cent last year, more than three times the euro zone average.

However, the Central Statistics Office (CSO) cautioned the headline rate of growth – down from 7.8 per cent in 2017 – was still being inflated by the actions of multinationals.

It said measures such as personal consumption and modified domestic demand ,which rose by 3 per cent and 3.3 per cent respectively, were better indicators of underlying domestic activity.

The latest quarterly national accounts show gross domestic product (GDP), the standard measure of economic growth, rose by 6.7 per cent last year, making the Republic the fastest growing economy in the EU for the fifth consecutive year.

Gross national product (GNP), which strips out the multinational profit flows, increased by 5.9 per cent.

In the larger sections of the economy, industry showed a small contraction of 0.2 per cent in volume terms.